Burma missing plane: Evidence of possible crash surface

Debris of a plane and bodies have been retrieved in the Andaman Sea following search

Evidence consisting of plane debris and bodies have been found on the Andaman sea pointing to the possibility that the Myanmar missing military plane indeed crashed.

The plane went missing on Wednesday with a reported 122 people on board. The Chinese built Y8-200 F plane was flying from Myeik to Yangon and was believed to be transporting military servicemen and their families.

The Burmese army have however confirmed that debris and bodies have been found dispersed in the Andaman Sea.

“We have found the plane and some dead bodies this morning about 8.25 AM (0725 IST),” a spokesman for the military’s information team said.

According to the military Facebook page, the wreckage of the aircraft was found off the coastal town of Launglon near the city of Dawei.

The flight was a short routine trip but within half an hour the flight fell off the radar and communications were lost with the flight.

Flight path from Myeik to Yangon. Wreckage site at Dawei [Google]The military have confirmed that they have found 10 bodies including 4 of which are children, on Thursday morning. Among the debris were a wheel, several pieces of luggage and a number of life jackets. However, the main parts of the airplane are yet to be found.

The cause of the crash is yet to be determined. Officials say that despite this being monsoon season the weather was clear and there was no distress signal from the plane before its disappearance.

The aircraft had logged 809 flight hours before this flight and had been recently purchased. The pilot, Lieutenant Colonel Nyein Chan had more than 3,000 hours of flying experience according to the military.

In the event that all 122 passengers on board have all perished, this would be one of Myanmar’s worst aviation tragedies to date.

In recent years, Myanmar has experienced a number of aircraft incidents.

In February 2016, an air force craft with 5 crew members on board crashed in the capital of Nay Pyi Taw.

In 2012, a commercial aircraft of Air Bagan burst into flames and killed 2 people after making an emergency landing.

Another 3 officers were killed in military helicopter crash in central Burma.